Sunday, 27 May 2012

The name blog comes from a contraction of the words web and log. It is a personal diary made public. So maybe the definition will adapt as more professional writers see blogs as an opportunity to promote other websites. However my public log for today should include a note about You Tube. I managed to upload my first video today, with a little help from my brother and it can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6iMmWw_2qU&feature=youtube_gdata

I am a member of two music groups. One is attached to More Music in Morecambe and we play traditional music which is similar to The Lancashire Miller as per the You Tube video. We meet on Monday evenings between 7pm and 9pm and learn a couple of songs each week. The second group is the Morecambe Ukulele Club which meets at the Trimpell Club in Morecambe on Saturday mornings between 10am and midday. Here we tend to take it in turns to lead a song. All styles are welcome but I have not heard many songs by George Formby.

Tuesday, 22 May 2012

I used to write a blog each day and sometimes more than one per day. I know that I don't publish blogs as often as I used to, but maybe that is why I received an email yesterday from a 'professional writer'. She was willing to write blogs at no cost to me. All she wanted was a link in the blog to a company. This might be fine for blog writers who aren't interested in writing their own content. It would also be fine for people who wanted to call a blog theirs when it was written by someone else.

Ghost writing may be good for lazy bloggers who don't want to write but do want ownership. The trouble is that I don't see the point of publishing a blog if that is the case - just read another blog. The ghost writer will never be able to write a personal blog as well as the owner because only the owner knows his or her opinion. Blogs are essentially written to highlight personal concerns, not to create links to American companies.

Monday, 7 May 2012

Democracy gives us checks and balances and stops power being held by a
few people - or at least it should because if power is held by small
groups or individuals then it has a different name like oligarchy or
dictatorship. One check is to make sure that the legislative, executive
and judicial branches of government are independent. Another method is
to make sure there is at least one choice for voters. Another method is
to give power to larger groups of elected individuals who do not have to
follow party lines. In the opposite direction you would give power to a
cabinet or an individual like a prime minister or a mayor.

Yesterday,
in the Sunday Politics from the North West, the new mayor of Salford,
Ian Stewart was asked about engaging the electorate as so few had voted
for a mayor. He said that actions enthuse the electorate, but his
actions can come back to bite him. I presume he means that if he goes
against the wishes of the voters then he will not be elected next time. I
don't know if this comes as news to Ian but he should go to the bookies
and see if they are taking bets on a non-Labour mayor - ever. He
doesn't have to persuade the electorate, he just has to keep the core
Labour activists happy.

So if you want to make democracy
weaker and think that an oligarchy or dictatorship may be better for
society then maybe it's time to vote for a mayor. Even better, let the
councillors in places like Liverpool impose their Labour mayor.